5G Requirements

In order to realize such a demanding and unprecedented 5G service vision, Samsung played a leading role in the ITU to define IMT-2020 capabilities consisting of 8 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) as shown in Figure 5. These KPIs are derived from the three main 5G use cases: Enhanced Mobile Broadband (EMBB), Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLL), and Massive Machine Type Communications (Massive MTC).

According to these industry-agreed requirements, 5G systems will be required to deliver 20 times higher maximum data rate and 10 times higher user experienced data rate compared to 4G LTE. In particular, 5G systems are expected to support 100 Mbps data rate services regardless of a user's location and much higher data rate (e.g. 1 Gbps) for low-mobility users in hotspot areas. This aspect is illustrated in Figure 6 and Figure 7. To provide this uniform quality of experience (QoE), 5G network deployments are expected to be much denser compared to 4G networks, so cost-effective 5G deployment is a very important requisite.

To fundamentally support the cloud storage/computing infrastructure of the future, 5G networks will deliver an end-to-end latency of less than 5 milliseconds and over-the-air latency of less than one millisecond (see Figure 8) - which is one-tenth compared to 4G network latency.

With a spectral efficiency requirement 3 times higher than the 1-3 bps/Hz on 4G networks, 5G is also expected to guarantee an efficient use of the frequency spectrum by using Multiple-Input and Multiple-output (MIMO), advanced coding and modulation schemes and new waveform design (more on this in the enabling technology section).

To address the widening revenue gap that the operators and service providers are experiencing, 5G systems are targeted to be 100 times more efficient than the 4G systems by delivering 100 times more traffic using the same energy over the network. This in consequence necessitates low-cost network equipment, lower deployment costs, and enhanced power saving functionality on the network and user equipment sides.

5G technologies will be required to cope efficiently with all degrees of mobility by providing “mobility on demand” based on each device’s and service’s needs. 5G systems are also expected to enable high mobility up to 500 km/h with acceptable quality of service (QoS). This is envisioned in particular for high speed trains.

In the vision for IoT services, the number of simultaneous connections in the 5G system is expected to be about 106 per square kilometer, which is ten times higher than that of the legacy system.

Further to the above key performance indicators, we describe more specific examples of requirements for 5G services as follows:

For instance, as well as the requirements on low latency, packet error rate (probability that data is successfully delivered in a pre-defined time) can be used as a requirement to ensure service reliability.

In the case of cellular IoT (IoT over cellular system), which is mentioned here as a part of a broader IoT technology, the main requirements consist of power/cost efficiency, larger indoor coverage, and reduced complexity.